"Posture," I call out.

"Son of a bitch I'm not looking to join competitions or nothing," Leo groans. "Why does posture matter?"

"It's just how you ride a horse properly." I shrug. I sit on the mounting block with my elbow propped on my knee and head rested on my hand.

I kick in the dirt out of boredom. I don't know what to teach today, right now he's just doing routine but earlier we were focusing on cantering.

"We've been doing this a while and we both seem done with it," Leo calls out before turning the horse in my direction. "Can we be done with this now?"

"Sure." I shrug. "You're doing tack this time. None of that 'I don't know how to do it' bullshit."

He groans before dismounting the horse and leading Poppy into the barn.

Eventually I hop off the block and walk into the stables where Poppy is hooked up to the cross ties and Leo is untacking. He doesn't notice me standing there but I just watch him to make sure he's doing it properly.

He's taken off his helmet and his hair is curly in every direction. When he thinks I'm not around he doesn't have the scowl on his face and I watch him smile to the horse as he says something to it. I smile to myself thinking it's a little cute.

I leave the stables as soon as I notice my phone vibrating.

"Hey," I say to Keanu.

"Hey. Want to hangout?"

"Leo is over but feel free to come pick him up."

"Er, how about you drive him home and come hangout here for a bit."

"I don't want to drive him back."

"I can come over later."

"Why not now? Why am I always stuck with Leo."

"You'll be fine." Then she hangs up and I roll my eyes.

"I'll be fine my ass," I mutter to myself before entering the stables again where Leo is taking Poppy to his stable.

"You've picked this all up pretty fast," I say.

When he returns he just shrugs and walks past me to the tack locker. He would hate to admit he's actually learning something.

He returns to where I am, finally all cleaned up. A scowl on his face just to show how much he hates me. His hair is still a mess and he's clearly sweating from the heat. It's chilly from the breeze but the sun is still hot.

"What now?" He mutters.

"Dunno. Let's go to the house," I say kicking off the beam I was leaning on. We leave the horse stables and begin walking back.

"What's the plan for this weekend?" Leo asks.

"Parents said I could go to the cottage. How you going to convince your mom?"

He laughs. "What do you mean? Why would I ask? If I ask they'll say no, it's easier just to never tell them."

"Aren't they concerned when you don't come home?"

I know the answer to that question, I don't know why I asked.

"They don't even realize when I am home." Leo looks to me. Like Keanu he has dark brown eyes. Much lighter in the sun though.

"Is it the same way with Kea?" I've got to stop asking questions I already know.

He looks go the ground. "No they could never let such a perfect child get hurt." We reach the door but he stops. "Mind if we sit outside?" He reaches into his pocket to pull out a lighter.

I sigh before finally nodding. "You're going to make me smell like smoke."

"Great, maybe then your father will not like me and we can stop being forced to do this."

I watch him struggle to light his cigarette from the breeze but eventually he manages. I watch the rough winds mess around his hair along with everything else in the yard. The leaves through the trees are loud but peaceful.

"I could drive you home now," I say.

"I'll wait."

I nod my head. It's golden hour and the whole field is covered in a orange glow from the sun, including part of Leo's face.

"I don't understand how you could do that."

"Have you ever tried?"

"Once a long time ago."

"Try again." He waves the cigarette in front of my face and immediately I move away from the awful stench. "C'mon goodie two shoe."

"Stop saying that, it's just a gross habit. Nothing rebellious teen about it."

"Whatever your excuse is." He shrugs moving it back to his lips to take another drag. "You're too scared to try anything. That's what makes you prep school kids so boring and uptight."

"And where do you plan to be in the next couple years?"

"I hate that question. You people always think I'm just throwing away my life. I'm just having fun and plan to do something that I actually enjoy."

I try to think about what he says.

"You have fun spending your spare time studying for a chance to get into a university to further study something you don't care and work thirty or forty something hours doing a job you don't like all for money. To live miserably in a mansion with no time to build relationships with family."

I half smile. "Are you venting about how uptight we prep kids are or how your parents are."

"Doesn't matter." He drops the cigarette and smothers it under his shoes. "Tell me I'm wrong."

Part of me finds it sad how he seems to think everyone with rich parents automatically means their parents don't pay attention to them. My dad has always been difficult to bond with but that's not due to him working or having money it's just the lack of love and attention he got from his dad. It's not his fault. He tries and that's why I do things like horse back riding and archery, because it's our bonding time.

"You're not wrong but you're not right," I finally say.

"What an easy answer," he rolls his eyes. "I agree with you but I don't."

I furrow my eyebrows. "You're odd."

"What? People like you are boring to have conversations with. I don't care if someone has a different opinion then me, I like when people express it. Like if I said something totally offensive and people shrug me off, no, tell me I'm wrong."

I get what he's saying.

"All this coming from a guy who half the time is dead silent."

"I speak when I want to." He shrugs.

"Yes I've picked up that you're a stubborn shit who hates everyone and everything."

He smiles a bit turning his head to face me where the sun is in his eyes. "I take that as a compliment."

"I too aspire to miserable," I snort sarcastically.

"However, against popular belief, I'm not all that miserable."

I nod my head. "What do we do now?"

Leo is about to answer when his phone starts to ring. "Hello?...Uh yeah... With Andrew...I'll ask."

He holds the phone away from his ear.

"Screw hanging with my sister want to hang with Mia and Liv down by the water?"

"The water?"

"Oh, right, it's this pond thing in this forested area. I don't know how to explain it other then cliche teen movie hangout."

"I guess?"

"Kay, cool." He puts the phone back to his ear. "Yeah, we'll be there in a bit."

He hangs up and stands up, I follow.

"Go grab your keys, pollock."

"You just called me And--" I sigh. "Why do you call me that?"

"Cause it's funny," he says following behind me.

I shake my head as I grab my keys from the bowl.

"I am not leaving my car anywhere sketchy."

"There's a dirt path, it was an old campground. I'm sure it'll be fine."

I roll my eyes.

He's rather talkative in the car today and gives me directions.

Finally I turn into a forested area in the middle of nowhere. It's bumpy and I spend the whole five minutes we drive through the path threatening Leo that if this damages my car I'd kill him.

Finally we stop and get out before walking for a bit. We pass Liv's red Toyota meaning they're here already.

I can hear Liv's playful screams before a splash. Soon I can see her in the water and Mia up on a rock in her under garments. Then she jumps in, her screams echoing through the forest.

No ones around to hear. We're in the middle of nowhere.

"Seriously, how do you guys find these places?" I say.

"Mia says her dad used to bring her here when she was younger before they closed it down."

"Why'd it close?"

He shrugs as we walk up to the water. "The people never sold it. It's just been sitting here. There's still one or two crummy old campers some people left behind for garbage."

"So this is traspassing?"

"Oh be quiet. They haven't been in here in years. Besides, it's a cool hangout. This summer we cleaned out this one camper in the woods back there." He points deep into the forest. All I see is green.

"Took you guys long enough," Liv says as she climbs back out of the water.

"Andrew here drives only ten over the limit."

Liv pauses and I can almost see her lift an eyebrow. "A car that nice and you drive that slow?" She climbs back onto the rock and finally makes it back to the top.

"Did you guys call Elle?" Leo says as he starts walking around the pond to where their clothes are piled on the ground.

"Yeah she and her dad are up north till Friday remember?" Mia says as Liv jumps off the rock.

"I thought they left tomorrow?"

"No they left this morning."

"Oh." He pulls off his shirt.

Is he really going to jump in, in boxers?

I should've grabbed a suit. Although I would've looked weird being the only one in a suit. Only with these people do I look weird being normal.

"You just going to stand there Pollock?" He calls out.

"Yeah c'mon Andrew," Liv says swimming in my direction. "It's not too gross is it?" I don't like the tone of her voice.

A splash comes from the other side of the pond where Leo has jumped in. When I'm distracted watching him resurface Liv splashes water all over me. I take a step back with my jaw dropped and she just laughs.

"I don't like buzzkills. Jump in or I'll drench you."

Finally I give up and strip.

When I'm standing in my boxers I see Leo at the top of the rock give a thumbs up before jumping off.

"Stop looking at him and get in," Liv says splashing me again.

The sun has set now and it's a bit darker. The sky is still orange but the trees cover a bit of it.

I decide to jump off the rock so I walk past Liv and climb up. Once I'm standing I finally decide fuck it and I jump.